Brothers and Sisters, it is now time to recite
the Five Mindfulness Trainings. Please join your palms and recite each line of
the opening chant after me:

The Dharma is deep and lovely.
We now have a chance to see it, study it, and practice it.
We vow to realize its true meaning.

The Five Mindfulness Trainings are the basis
for a happy life. They have the capacity to protect life and to make it
beautiful and worth living. They are also the door that opens to enlightenment
and liberation. Please listen to each mindfulness training and answer yes,
silently, every time you see that you have made the effort to study, practice,
and observe it.

First Mindfulness Training

Aware of the suffering caused by the
destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating compassion and learning ways
to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined
not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to condone any act of killing in
the world, in my thinking, and in my way of life.

This is the first of the Five Mindfulness
Trainings. Have I made an effort to study and practice it during the past few
weeks?

(Bell)

Second Mindfulness Training

Aware of the suffering caused by
exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to
cultivating loving kindness and learning ways to work for the well-being of
people, animals, plants, and minerals.

I will practice generosity by
sharing my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in real need.
I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to
others. I will respect the property of others, but I will prevent others from
profiting from human suffering or the suffering of other species on Earth.

This is the second of the Five Mindfulness
Trainings. Have I made an effort to study and practice it during the past few
weeks?

(Bell)

Third Mindfulness Training

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful
sexual behavior, I am committed to cultivating sexual responsibility and respect
in myself and in others.

I will learn ways to protect the physical and
emotional integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. If I choose
to engage in sexual relations, I will do so only in a loving and committed
relationship. To preserve the happiness of myself and others, I am determined to
respect my emotional, physical, and legal commitments to my partner, as well as
commitments among other persons. I will do everything in my power to protect
children, women, and men from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families
from being broken by unmindful sexual behavior. I will be mindful of loneliness
and sexual suffering in myself and others and I will be compassionate and
nonjudgmental concerning the sexual behavior of others.

This is the third of the Five Mindfulness
Trainings. Have I made an effort to study and practice it during the past few
weeks?

(Bell)

Fourth Mindfulness Training

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful
speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating
loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others
and relieve others of their suffering.

Knowing that words can create happiness or
suffering, I am committed to learning to speak truthfully, with words that
inspire self-confidence, joy, and hope. I will not spread news that
I do not know to be certain and will not criticize or condemn things of which I am
not sure. I will refrain from uttering words that can cause division or discord,
or that can cause the family or the community to break. I will make all efforts
to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.

This is the fourth of the Five Mindfulness
Trainings. Have I made an effort to study and practice it during the past few
weeks?

(Bell)

Fifth Mindfulness Training

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful
consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and
mental, for myself, my family, and my society, by practicing mindful eating,
drinking, and consuming.

I will ingest only items that
preserve peace, well-being, and joy in my body, in my consciousness, and in the
collective body and consciousness of my family and society. I am determined not
to use alcohol or any other intoxicant or to ingest foods or other items that
contain toxins, such as certain TV programs, magazines, books, films, and
conversations. I am aware that to damage my body or my consciousness with these
poisons is to betray my ancestors, my parents, my society, and future
generations. I will work to transform violence, fear, anger, and confusion in
myself and in society by practicing a diet for myself and for society. I
understand that a proper diet is crucial for self-transformation and for the
transformation of society.

This is the fifth of the Five Mindfulness
Trainings. Have I made an effort to study and practice it during the past few
weeks?

(Bell)

Brothers and Sisters, we have recited the Five
Mindfulness Trainings, the foundation of happiness for the individual, the
family, and society. We should recite them regularly so that our study and
practice of the mindfulness trainings can deepen day by day. Please join your
palms and recite each line of the closing chant after me:

Reciting the trainings, practicing the
way of awareness, gives rise to benefits without limit.
We vow to share the fruits with all beings.
We vow to offer tribute to parents, teachers, friends, and numerous beings,
who give guidance and support along the path.

This version of The Mindfulness Training
Recitation Ceremony was adapted from the Plum Village Chanting and Recitation
Book by the Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center, 3 August 2004.